Coach Todd Graham has made finding a Devil-backer his top defensive priority during Arizona State preseason camp.

The job description:

"We look for a guy who is explosive," Graham said. "Someone who is physically tough. If we were playing in the I formation, we would play this guy at tailback, not at fullback."

Over two years, Graham probably has had more discussions with his strength coach about Devil-backer than any other position. The ideal candidate is a top athlete, someone who is comfortable lining up both at defensive end and linebacker. He should stand around 6 feet 2 and have an eye-catching blend of speed, power and explosiveness.

Through this first week of practice, three candidates have emerged, two of whom have offensive backgrounds. On Sunday, during ASU's first full-squad practice, senior De'Marieya Nelson ran with the first team at the Devil position. Although Nelson last season occasionally lined up as a rush end, his primary position is tight end/H-back.

Also in the mix: red-shirt freshman Chans Cox and senior Marcus Washington, who has bounced around from position to position throughout his career. A former Phoenix Desert Vista standout, Washington started his ASU career at tailback but later moved to tight end. In the spring, Graham moved him to spur linebacker, and Washington showed strong defensive instincts.

Over the offseason, Graham approached Washington about trying Devil-backer in the fall. Washington's first task: watching film of former NFL pass-rushing greats Derrick Thomas and Lawrence Taylor. He also studied the ASU player who lined up at the position last season, Carl Bradford, a fourth-round draft pick of the Green Bay Packers.

"When I (first) moved from offense, I could just run into a lot of people," said Washington, listed at 6 feet and 223 pounds. "Now I need to be able to relax, see what's happening with the ball, look more at my guy in the backfield, so I can make the right play."

Over the past two years, Bradford excelled at Devil. Perhaps ASU's top athlete, he produced 18 percent of ASU's 218 tackles for loss and 21.5 percent of its quarterback sacks.

Nelson (6-3, 230 pounds) realizes the importance of the position, and he calls the opportunity to replace Bradford "a blessing." He didn't play defense in junior college, but in high school he played free safety and linebacker.

In his first season with the Sun Devils last year, Nelson might have been ASU's hardest hitter, most of his stops coming on special teams. As an H-back on offense, he rushed for 53 yards and caught seven passes for 107 yards and four touchdowns.

"What you'll see a lot more in the next week is De'Marieya doing a whole lot of Devil, because he knows what he's doing on offense," Graham said. "We really need to make sure he gets a strong foundation to train him, because I see him doing a lot more than just rushing third down (like last season)."

How much more? Graham isn't sure. Although he is sure Nelson will continue to play offense, he likes ASU's depth at tight end/H-back, which gives him flexibility. In the end, Graham might use more than one player at the Devil position.

"The best 11 guys are going to play on both sides of the football," Graham said. "I don't know how many plays (Nelson) played last year on offense, but it wasn't every play. At the end of the day, if he can help us more at Devil-backer, he'll play Devil-backer.

"I'm pleased with that position. I think we have the explosiveness to get that done."

ASU's Donnie Shields runs out to the field during practice at Kajikawa Practice Fields in Tempe on Sunday, August 3, 2014. (Photo: Patrick Breen/azcentral sports)